FRIDAY LETTERS: Health care reform bill supported

READERS WRITE

Published 12:00 am, Thursday, March 25, 2010

For the past 14 months, Republicans have contributed nothing to the health care debate, choosing instead to be obstructionists in hopes of scoring political points if they could cause President Obama and the Democrats to fail. Now many of them say they will campaign on repealing the historic health care bill passed by the House on Sunday.

Count me among those who hope they do just that. I'd love to hear them argue in favor of allowing insurance companies to discriminate on the basis of preexisting conditions, and cancel policies of their customers who get sick, and impose annual and lifetime caps on benefits.

Related Stories

It'll also be interesting to hear how they argue against tax credits for small businesses that provide health care for their employees.

When Republicans campaign against these and other important reforms in the health care bill, they are siding with insurance companies and the status quo against ordinary Americans, assuring that they will remain in the minority for years to come. That can only be good for the country.

I am for the Democrats' health care bill because it will save lives and loosen the death grip of the powerful insurance industry that they have held for so long.

It will enable millions of people to get care when they are sick who are denied because they don't qualify or can't afford it.

Texas leads the nation in uninsured sick people. As for Opinions Editor Thomas Taschinger, his misleading Republican slant is all too obvious. Re the outrage over the "deem scheme" (in his column Sunday).

Where was his outcry when Newt Gingrich and Dennis Hastert (both Republicans) used this procedure over 200 times? Please give us a semblance of honesty.

And oh yes! The Tea Party! Judging from their pictures, most are on Medicare. Hello! That is a government run health care system and most would be dead without it.